House electric



Oct. 28, 1924; 1,513,330

w. LOUDON AUTOMOBILE SWITCH Filed June 5, 1922 2 Shuts-Shut 1 INVENTORWarren P Loudon.

ATTORNEY WITNESSES: v

Oct; 28. 1 2

w. P. LOUDON AUTOMOBILE SWITCH 2 sum-sum 2 Filed June 5, 1922 Fig. 3.

INVENTOR Warren E Loud n- ATTORNEY WITNES ES:

P atented a. 28, 1924. 1,513,330

UNITED STATESv PATENT OFFICE.

WARREN P. LOUDON, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO WESTING-HOUSE ELECTRIC & MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYL- VANIA.

AUTOMOBILE swrrcrr.

Application filed June 5, 1922. Serial No. 568,034.

To all whom it may concern: shaft 8 and a hollow sleeve member 9 that Beit known that I, l/VARREN P. LoUnoN, are concentric with each other, 55a citizen of the United States, and a resident The contact drum 6comprises an inner of Springfield, in the county of Hampden disk 10 thatis mounted on the shaft 8 for and State of Massachusetts, have inventedrotation therewith and for rotation relaa new and useful Improvement inAutomotively to an outer ring member 11 which bile Switches, of whichthe following is a bears the usual contact segments. The disk 60specification. is provided with a latching mechanism My inventionrelates to automobile comprising a radially movable member 12 10switches and is has particular relation to having an extended portion 13and a spring such switches as embody means for control- 14 for biasingthe member 12 outwardly to ling the ignition circuits and lightingcirengage the ring 11. The contact drum 7 6 cuits of motor vehicles.similarly comprises. an inner disk 16 that My invention has for one ofits objects to is rigidly secured to the sleeve member 9 and provide amechanism of the character dean outer ring member 17 that areconnectscribed above that may easily and conven- .ed by a latchingmechanism comprising a iently be arranged to remain in anydesiredreciprocable member 18 and a spring 19. 7 position. Contact fingers 20coact with the contact A second object of my invention is to prodrums.

20 vide a simple and compact mechanism for The latching mechanisms arecontrolled controlling a plurality of electrical circuits. by a lockmechanism 21 of any usual or My invention comprises an arrangementstandard type. The lock mechanism com- 75 for controlling a plurality ofcircuits in prises a rotatable member or key barrel 22 which theactuating means therefor are renwhich has secured thereto a pin 23 thatis dered inefiective by a single controlling eccentric relatively to theaxis of the barrel. member. Two contact drums are provided Areciprocable member 24 that is mounted with operating handles that areconnected in a suitable guide member 25 is provided 80 thereto bylatching mechanisms. A single with an arcuate slot 25 with which the pinkeycontrolled member disconnects the 23 coacts to constitute a cammechanism.

latching mechanisms from the contact The member 24 is provided at itsupper drums when the latter are in desired preportion with twooppositely extending arms determined conditions. The operation of 26 and27, each of which is provided with 85 the handles when the latchingmechanisms upwardly projecting portions for coacting are inoperative isnot efiective to change the with the latch members 12 and 18,respecpositions of the drums. tively. As best shown in Fig. 4, the mem-In the accompanying drawing, ber 27 is provided with a relatively longFigure 1 is a front view in elevation of a curved surface 28 that isadapted to engage 90 switch mechanism embodying my 1nvent1on., the latchmember 18 throughout a consider- F 1g. 2 1s a view in longitudinalsection of able range of movement of the contact drum the mechanism ofFig. 1. j 7. The projecting portion of the arm 26 is Fig. 3 is a View intransverse section taken relatively narrow and is adapted to engage onthe line IIIIII of Fig. 2. the latch member 12 in the off position 95Fig. 4 is a front View of the switch mechaonly of the ignition contactdrum 6. nism of Fig. 1 with the cover removed. As shown in Figs. 3 andl, respectively,

The switch mechanism comprises a cylinthe respective ring members of thecontact drical casing member 1, a base plate 2 for drums 6 and 7 areprovided with suitable supporting the various terminal members notches29 in their peripheries that are 100 of the switch, a metallic coverplate 3 and a adapted to be engaged by springs 30 and 31 glass coverplate 4 that are retained in posifor the purpose of yieldingly retainingthem tion by a ring 5. A contact drum 6 for conin any position to whichthey may be adtrolling the ignition'circuits and a contact justed. Theangle through which the condrum 7 for controlling the lighting circuitstact drum 6 may be rotated is fixed'by a slot 1 of a vehicle arerespectively mounted on a 32 in the ring member 11 and a stop member 33that is secured to the base plate 2. The rin member of the contact drum7 is provide with a slot 34 which coacts with a sto member 35 whichappears in Figs. 2 an 4.

The drums 6 and 7 are controlled respectively by operating handles 37and 38 which are rigidly connected to the shaft 8 and the sleeve member9, respectively.

When it is desired to render the switch ino erative, such, for example,as upon par ing the car, the ignition switch handle 37 is actuated toits off position. The lighting switch handle 38 may be in any of itsseveral operative positions or its off position. The key barrel 22 isrotated by the usual key in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewedfrom the front, whereupon the cam mechanism comprising the pin 23 andthe slot 26 actuates the slidable member 24 upwardly to disengage thelatch mem bers 12 and 18 from the respective ring members 11 and 17. Thelatter members are retained in the positions to which they have beenadjusted by the springs 30 and 31.

The operation of the handles 37 and 38 is not effective to change thepositions of ring members 11 and 17 of the drums 6 and 7, respectively,since the corresponding disks 10 and 16 are disconnected therefrom. Ifeither of the handles 37 and 38 has been ac tuated from its normalposition relatively to its corresponding drum subsequent to itsdisconnection therefrom, it will be necessary, after the release of thelatching mechanisms, to return it to such position in order that thelatch member may register with the coacting slot in the correspondingmembers when the key is operated to render the switch mechanismadjusted.

In order to insure that the ignition contact drum 6 is in its offposition when the latching mechanisms are disengaged, the ring member 11is provided with a slot 39 into which the extension 13 projects andwhich must register with the member 26 before the latching mechanismsmay be released. In case the ignition switch is in other than its offposition, the member 26 engages the periphery of the ring member 11 andu ward movement of the member 24 is there y prevented.

The advantages obtained by employing a switch constructed in accordancewith my invention are that the parts are comparatively few in number,may be easily assembled and occupy a comparatively small space. Thearrangement whereby the operating handles are disconnected from thecontact drums instead of being locked in their adjusted positionsprevents an unauthorized person from rendering the switch operative bybreaking the locking mechanism upon application of relatively greatforce to the operating handles, as is possible in connection withswitches of certain' types of standard construction. The rotation of thehandles of a switch such as that described herein cannot operate tochange the position of the contact drums so long as the key controlledmechanism occu ies the position in which the latching mec anisms aredisengaged.

I claim as my invention:

1. A switch comprising two rotatable effecting the disconnection of saiddrums from said handles.

3. A switch comprising two rotatable.

drums, actuating handles therefor, latching mechanisms for connectingsaid handles to said drums and a single member for simultaneouslycontrolling the latching mechanisms.

4. A switch comprising two contact drums in axial alinement, twoconcentric shafts for actuating said drums, a latching mechanism forconnecting said shafts to the respective drums, and a member forselectively render? ing said latching mechanisms operative orinoperative.

5. A switch comprising two contact drums in axial alinement, twoconcentric shafts for actuating said drums, a latching mechanism forconnecting said shafts to the respective drums, and a member forselectively rendering said latching mechanisms operative 0r inoperativewhen one of said drums is in one position only and when the other ofsaid drums is in any position.

6. A switch comprising an ignition controlling member having an off andan on position, a lighting controlling member having a plurality ofoperative positions and an inoperative position, actuating means foreach of said controlling members, and means for rendering said actuatingmeans ineffective when said ignition controlling member is in its offposition only and said lighting controlling member is in any position.

7. A switch comprising an ignition controlling member having an offandian on position, a lighting controlling member having a plurality ofoperative positions and an inoperative position, actuating means foreach of said controlling members, latching means for connecting theactuating means to the respective controlling members, and means forrendering said latching means inoperative, said last-named means beineffective only when said ignition .contro ling member is 1n its offposition.

so i

8. A switch comprising two rotatable contact members, two shafts foractuating the respective contact members, a spring-actuating latchmember for operatively connecting each shaft to the correspondingcontact member, and means for controlling the latch members comprising akey-actuated member and a cam mechanism controlled thereby.

9. A switch comprising two rotatable contact members, two shafts foractuating the respective contact members, a spring-actuated latch memberfor operatively connecting each shaft to the corresponding contactmember, and means for controlling the latch members comprising areciprocable member for actuating them out of engagement with saidcontact members and a rotatable member for actuating said reciprocablemember.

10. A switch comprising two rotatable contact members, two shafts foractuating the respective contact members, a springactuated latch memberfor operatively con necting each shaft to the corresponding contactmember, and means for controlling the latch members comprising areciprocable member for actuating them out of engagement with saidcontact members and a rotatable member having a cam connection to saidreciprocable member.

11. A switch comprising two rota-table contact members, two shafts foractuating the respective contact members, a springactuated latch memberfor operatively connecting each shaft to the corresponding contactmember, and means for controlling the latch members comprising areciprocable member, one of said contact members being arranged topermit the operation of said reciprocable member only when said onecontact member occupies a predetermined position.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 25th dayof May, 1922.

WARREN P. LOUDON.

